Mississippi Republican Party

The Mississippi Republican Party is the affiliate of the Republican Party in the US state of Mississippi. The original incarnation of the party was founded after the American Civil War, but it was largely inactive due to the Democratic Party's strong hold on the state government. In 1956, however, the current incarnation of the party was founded, and the party grew in support after Dwight D. Eisenhower ran for president in 1956. In 1964, Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater became the first Republican to win the state in a presidential election since Reconstruction. Only once since 1956, in 1976, did the state vote for another party's candidate, this being the Democrat Jimmy Carter. The party also grew due to wedge issues such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and it became the most powerful party in the state. Its main points were opposing abortion, the balancing of renewable and non-renewable energy sources, voter ID laws, opposition to eminent domain, and cutting taxes.